License and Inspect Backyard Dog Breeders- Mia's Law

We are Fredo Helping Paws in Need, a private animal rescue and shelter in Charlotte, NC. We receive no government funding or assistance and exist solely as a result of our faithful supporters. Even though we get no government funding, we are heavily regulated and inspected by several government entities. We welcome these rules and regulations because we believe that they are in place to help protect the animals we serve. Unfortunately, the many dogs that come through our shelter are here because of a lack of regulations. Backyard dog breeders are allowed to keep animals in deplorable conditions, with inadequate shelter and no vet care. Females are bred over and over, with every cycle and with no regard for their health or well-being.

There are many examples we could give on why we believe these breeders desperately need to be inspected and regulated. One of our most recent examples in a tiny, 10 pound girl that we named Mia. In very cold temperatures on 12/27/2017, Mia was left outside the Davidson Co, NC Animal Shelter in an open cardboard box. She was thrown away like trash. Mia's little body was missing huge areas of fur and her skin covered in cuts, whelps and sores. She appeared so undernourished and ill that it wasn't clear what breed of she might be. Mia came into our lives by chance. We had volunteers going to Davidson County that morning to rescue a dog named Juice. While speaking with staff, we learned of this tiny little being that was held away in a back room at the shelter. She appeared blind and ill, so they kept her away from the main area. Without a second thought, Fredo's agreed to rescue Mia as well. The next day, she met our wonderful vet. He revealed some very sad truths about Mia. Although several people felt that she was between 12 and 14 years old, the vet feels that she is as young as 4. She does not have mange. Her hair is missing due to illness and skin infections. She has infected ears, eyes and parasites. Her teeth are broken and rotting. She has many cuts on her little face. The vet feels that these cuts and the condition of her teeth indicate that she was caged and was trying desperately to free herself. Mia also has at least two mammary tumors, which are a direct result of over-breeding. He believes that despite her young age, she has been bred every time she has come into heat. Our vet stated that had he come into contact with Mia in a shelter setting, he would recommend euthanasia. Since he knows how hard we fight to give every animal at least a chance at life, we brought Mia back with an armful of medications. The next day, one of Mia's blood tests came back and the news was not good. Mia is diabetic and will require insulin. He believes that it is entirely possible that if she had gone to the vet even once during her life, this would have been caught and Mia wouldn't be blind today. We are not giving up on Mia. We will continue to fight to allow her to know what it's like to be loved and cuddled, to have fresh, clean water and food, to be a cherished pet. She deserves that.

What these animals don't deserve is to be treated as a commodity, to have their bodies and their babies used for the financial gain of humans that can't be bothered to see about their basic needs. We are asking you to join us in our call to have laws enacted to regulate the business of backyard breeding. We want put into place a structure of rules and regulations that can help ensure that animals are treated humanely and not simply used up and then thrown away like trash.